One of my favorite subversive things to do as a composer on a television show that reaches millions of children all around the world is to include stylistic musical homages to my favorite artists. I consider it a form of sonic philanthropy to pass along the wisdom of the ‘unsung’ artists that have so greatly influenced me. In the case of this weeks episode of Harvey Beaks titled “Dad Band,” I found an opportunity to create a tribute to to one of the greatest American pop/rock bands of the last 30 years: The Pixies.

Granted, i’m not allowed to lift any phrase from a Pixies song, so what I do instead is try and think like the Pixies would. From Kim Deal’s trademark “la la la” back up vocals and her driving bass lines, to Black Francis’ unconventional chord changes on his telecaster which are overlaid by an abrasive, yet simple melodic phrase by guitarist Joey Santiago. All these elements make up the language of the Pixies and that’s what I try to decipher and re-interpret when I write in the manner of any of my musical heroes.

I had the honor of playing banjo on stage with Black Francis on the Pixies song “Monkey Gone to Heaven” back in 2010. Now to see if I can get him to sing on an episode of Harvey Beaks! Hmm…

OOOOooohhh my criminey christmas. I got intensively pissed at the lack of clear lineart for the score for “Melody” from DGM. (I’m just ranting now) I literally made the seal with brutal studying of every picture of the score I could find. And I ended up with a personal design-ish-thing-seal. Surprisingly, this took +10 hours. Though it could be because I was so intent on copying and pasting the same circles….

00:01 Introduction03:27 Augurs of Spring06:36 Ritual of Abduction07:53 Spring Rounds11:50 Ritual of the Rival Tribes13:38 Procession of the Oldest and Wisest One14:17 The Dancing Out of the Earth15:55 Part II Introduction20:08 Mystic Circles of the Young Girls23:07 The Naming and Honoring of the Chosen One24:32 Evocation of the Ancestors25:16 Ritual Action of the Ancestors28:57 Sacrificial Dance